A Simultaneous Model for Simulating the Propagation of Hydraulic Head in Aquifers with Leakage Pathways

Abstract

A three-dimensional simultaneous solution model was developed for analysis of variable transient flows, specifically leakage associated with arbitrary groundwater aquifers. The model simultaneously calculates leakage rates using the hydraulic gradients between coupled leakage points at two leaky aquifers and evaluates the propagation of hydraulic heads in multiple aquifers resulting from that leakage. Important considerations for leakage simulation are variant leakage rates with time and leakage starting time. Two types of leakage pathways are specified in terms of the generated time, including (1) pre-existing leakage pathways and (2) abruptly-induced leakage pathways at specific times. The governing equation with a leakage term is composed of three finite difference equations, and its form depends on whether leakage pathways pre-exist or are induced at specified times according to known or assumed aquifer histories. The developed numerical code was validated by comparison with the results of the TOUGH2/EOS1 program for a three-dimensional conceptual domain.